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The outcry prompted the agency to refer the issue to SOAH, which has set a contested hearing. It could potentially reduce the increase for April.

Aqua Texas officials say most customers in its southwest region, which includes Bexar, Comal, Kendall, Bandera and Wilson counties, saw their base monthly rate go from $38.47 to $48.

But the monthly bills doubled for some customers served by water systems that were acquired by the firm since its last rate increase in 2004, who now are being brought up to the new regional rate.

“What we find unjust and unreasonable is the regionalization of rates,” said John Quest, representative of five subdivisions, including two in Comal County served by the former Canyon Springs Water Co.

“We want a fair rate increase based on the cost of providing service to individual water companies,” he said.

Officials of Aqua Texas, which owns 450 sewer and water systems that serve 200,000 Texans, say regionalizing rates protects customers of small utilities from huge rate boosts should their systems need large capital improvements.